


Eos' Heirs

by Crucelia



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Clan, Daemons, Demons, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Maybe Ardyn Izunia/Original Female Character one day, Superpowers, animal whisperer, beasts - Freeform, mountain clain, royal family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 20:54:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 16,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28534728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crucelia/pseuds/Crucelia
Summary: Lucinda is a descendant of the Altruien Clan, a clan long forgotten by most. Centuries ago it had been known for its connections to the daemons and beasts as they never once had to fear them. A connection that faded over time as the Modern Era grew closer.Nowadays, few individuals are born with the ability to communicate with the supposedly evil beings wandering Eos. Fewer still survive those encounters.Learning about Noctis' fate in her teenage years, Lucinda vows to do everything she can to help him survive.Even if it meant having to give up her own life.
Kudos: 3





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone and thanks for reading!
> 
> Just a few infos up ahead: This fanfiction might contain some triggering content for some, so please be cautious and read at your own risk.
> 
> Also, I'll divide the fanfiction into several parts. The first one will be about her teenage years; it starts when she's 12 years old and will go to a few years before the events of the Kingsglaive movie.
> 
> The second part will be all about what my OC does during the Kingsglaive event. This will be a rather short passage.
> 
> The third part will be about the general story of FF15 until the day Noctis is pulled into the Crystal.
> 
> I'm not sure yet how many parts there'll be, but I'll try to stay with four or five at most.
> 
> Until then, happy reading and see you again soon! :)

The fire burnt brightly in the make-shift pit carved into the stone, its shadows dancing on the stone walls in an enchanting, dangerous way.

"The First Oracle was a pious maiden from Tenebrae. Bahamut, the Draconian, bestowed the powers of the Stars on her and his trident."

The storyteller moved around the fire pit, moving her arms and legs in a dancing manner. Her voice washed over the camp, low timbre soothing the fear and anxiety coursing through their veins.

"The First King, born just as mortal as the Oracle, had powers divine. He banished the Eternal Darkness with weapons of light. In return, the Astrals gave him a Crystal to protect with his life."

A roar sounded from somewhere deeper inside the tunnel and a babe started crying. When the storyteller opened her eyes, they glowed blue in the dark. She was illuminated by the light on her back and as she moved to stand in front of the hushing mother, she smiled.

"Those old tales may well be true, yet they overshadow the stories of our people. Our past."

Taking the babe into her arms, she cradled it to her chest.

"There once lived a woman, as pious as the Oracle and as strong as the King."

The soothing tone in her voice slowly calmed the babe down, its dark eyes curiously gazing up at the female above it.

"She was loved by all and even more so by the daemons. Fear not, though, because she was not a monster herself."

Handing the babe back to its mother, she danced her way over to the fire, feet and hands moving to a rhythm no one else could hear but her.

"Our clan slowly forgets, but memories of her still live on. Part of her is in all of us, watching and taking care."

Stopping in front of the firepit, the storyteller raised her hands to the tunnel ceiling.

"The Mother of the Altruien Clan. Our savior and greatest hero. Forgotten, yet still remembered. Loved, yet hated. A legend and one not born because of the Astrals, who oh so easily forsake the humans."

The woman shook her head, closing her eyes.

"In the blackest of times, she found light in darkness itself. A hope no one dared to wish for."

Another roar sounded off in the tunnel. This time, however, none of the people reacted.

"Darkness may be foe, but it can also be friend. And the Mother is our connection to it, keeping us safe wherever we go."


	2. Part I: The Path To Adolescence

“You can wait for others to decide your fate, or you can master your own destiny. Just know that others seldom have very much planned for your future happiness, so the do-it-yourself approach may just be your best bet.” - Anthony St. Maarten


	3. The Beginning

Lucinda looked through the worn-down pair of binoculars, taking notes with her free hand as she watched the herd of Spiracorns. They were eating the few strands of grass along the road leading out of Insomnia, slowly making their way north.

Over the years, the desert has extended more and more, claiming the land and burying the earth underneath layers of sand. The green space between the Wall of Insomnia and the desert barely reached three miles anymore.

The tree she had climbed up on was part of a small forest area, directly between the city and the desert. It barely held any leaves at this time of the year, yet this was the best vantage point in the area. She couldn't hope to climb any of the mountains that surrounded the road leading up to Insomnia, standing tall and proud.

Lucinda stirred out of her thoughts as she noticed one of the Spiracorns moving to another, bumping its horn against theirs. Nothing more. However, in her opinion, this was so much more interesting than that.

Was this a sign of affection? Comfort? Did it have healing properties? Was it a way to communicate?

She wished she had been up close. It would have made observing the reaction of the second Spiracorn a lot easier.

Lucinda took a look at the shadows, noting how they had begun stretching out. If she wanted to get behind the Wall in time, she had to leave now. Most of the beasts hadn't cared about her presence, yet she wasn't ready to face the terrors of the nights. The occasional sounds that breached the Wall at night showcased the dangers and she had heard enough stories from citizens that originally lived somewhere else.

She stuffed the binoculars, pen, and notebook back into her backpack before placing it on her back. Climbing down the tree was done quickly; practice made it easy for her to go up and down the trunk in seconds.

With a quick glance around she was off, hurrying through the underbrush in the direction of the wall. Close to the entrance were stairs that led down to the Crestholm Channels, the old sewer system beneath the city. Daemons wandered its tunnels, but it was the only way to get in and out secretly.

The only problem was that she had to be in stealth mode until she reached the ladders that led underground. If she wasn't careful, the guards on the Wall would discover her. Especially since the bushes didn't reach all the way to the Crestholm Channels' entrance.

Lucinda stopped at the edge of the underbrush, eyes moving around. Everything was quiet, no signs of any guards patrolling. Tilting her head back, she observed the top of the wall to see if she would see anyone patrolling. She took a deep breath, getting ready to run.

"Hey, you! What are you doing here?"

Lucinda flinched, slowly turning around in her crouched position. The bush rustled, leaves trickling down to the ground. She felt like a deer caught in headlights, eyes wide and body stiff.

There, directly by the treeline, stood a boy maybe a few years older than her alongside a tall, muscular man. Both their arms were crossed, although the younger male looked more annoyed while the older one had a serious look on his face.

"Oh, shit", she managed to press out.

Lucinda decided to trust her instincts and whirled around, darting off towards the entrance. The men shouted in response, following almost immediately.

To get to the sewer's entrance, she had to go through a door in the fence on the side of the road, down several stairs until she came across the seemingly barricaded hole in a dead end. However, the 'barricade' was only a wooden board loosely laid out across it, nails on four sides of it. By the time she reached it, she was out of breath.

The footsteps of her followers echoed through the abandoned alleys, making it hard to decipher where they were. She just hoped they weren't too familiar with this area as that would give her a minute more to get out of sight.

Lucinda climbed down the ladder far enough so that she could pull the board on top of the hole, the scraping sound ringing in her ears. Pausing for the moment, she pressed a hand across her mouth to silence her heavy pants and strained her ears to hear through the blood rushing in them.

The wood muffled most of the sounds, but she was still able to make out their voices as they reached the short alley. The younger one - at least she thought it was, considering he seemed more emotional than the other - let out a string of curses.

"Did we really just lose her?", he asked the other man, audibly upset. "What's under those boards?"

The man sounded troubled as he spoke. "The Crestholm Channels, Insomnia's old sewer system. Nowadays it's full of beasts and daemons. The hole is barricaded so no one can enter it."

"That doesn't make sense! She can't just have evaporated into thin air. What if she went down there? Can't we at least try to open the barricade?"

"If she went down there, that would be her death. Even if we looked inside, she'd probably have left the immediate vicinity of the entrance already.

"Then we have to follow her and save her!" There was some kind of rustling and steps getting closer to the wooden board.

"Gladio, stop! You are not ready to go down there. The monsters there are stronger than anything you have faced yet and even I am too weak to face them by myself. It's a losing battle."

As they continued to argue, their voices slowly faded until there was only the sound of a liquid dripping down and her own breathing.

Lucinda wanted to peak out and see if they were gone, but the threat of being discovered was too great. For now it would be best to return home.

The older man didn't know how wrong he was, though.

The Crestholm Channels did have one connection to the new sewer system. A small tunnel where none of the monsters she encountered here ever passed through.

She didn't know the exact reason for why it was that way, but she took a guess and said it's probably because of the Crystal's magical barrier extending to even this far below the earth. Or maybe something else kept them at bay. Whatever it was, it was perfect to escape the confines of the city.

She herself had to bend down to be able to go through the narrow tunnel, although she guessed that one day she would be crawling through it on all fours.

Doors marked the ends of that tunnel. There used to be locks until she picked them. Teaching herself how to do it was hard, but after several weeks, she managed to unlock them and finally was able to pass through.

Lucinda shook her head. This wasn't the right time to remember things. If she didn't get back home in time, her mother would yell at her again.

She climbed down the metal ladder, fingers having grown stiff from holding on tightly for a long period of time. The air grew increasingly colder and moist, a climate she had yet to get used to.

Bussemands, Ereshkigals and Yojimbos hissed at each other, their attention never once going to Lucinda as she quietly walked passed them with a barely lit flashlight. Occasionally, she saw Gelatins and Black Flans. It still awed her how they didn't react to her in any way unless she stared at them for a longer period of time or approached them intentionally.

She did try to get close to one of the Ereshkigals once, but it resulted in a nasty cut on her left arm.

Trying to explain that to her parents and to the doctors at the Royal Hospital was an experience. She told them it was a stray dog that didn't want to be petted. However, they obviously didn't believe her considering how deep the wounds were. The only reason they decided to drop the subject was her stubbornness.

Lucinda sighed, unconsciously putting a hand on top of the cuff covering the scars. She wouldn't be so careless anymore. Before she'd approach a daemon again, she was going to find the safest and most harmless one. Careless actions like that one would be her death one day.

If there were any safe ways to get near a daemon.

Reaching the first door, she opened it and entered the tunnel, crouching down and closing it behind her. The sounds of the daemons immediately were gone, shut out by the thick metal.

It took her almost an hour to get back the rest of the way to her home. After all, Insomnia was a busy city. Due to the war, there was a constant stream of outsiders coming to live in the capital. Many towns had already been destroyed, more will be sooner or later.

Just as she entered the apartment her parents owned, her mother stuck her head out of the kitchen.

"Welcome back, dear! Come and help me prepare dinner, please?", Melen greeted her, a fond smile on her face.

"Sure. Just give me a minute to change, mama."

Lucinda went into her room and quickly slipped out of her dirty, sweaty clothes, throwing them into a corner of the room. She took a simple black dress and put it on before going to help her mother.

She hummed. "What are we cooking, mama?"

"Spaghetti Bolognese. You do the sauce. If you need help, tell me and I'll give you tips. I want to see if you can make it." Her mother pointed a finger at her, playfully stern. "No cheating and looking it up in one of the books!"

Lucinda stuck her tongue out at her and turned to the kitchen counters, deciding on what she needed. She grabbed the items, put the rest back where they belonged, and started. Her mother had decided it was a good idea to teach her how to cook to motivate her a bit. School topics usually didn't interest her a lot except for chemistry and biology. Hence her grades were pretty low except for in said classes.

Luckily, her parents weren't affected by it a lot. They understood that most of the things the school taught their daughter weren't things that might be of use to her later. Ever since Lucinda had been a child, she always tended to go more towards animals and nature than to other children and electronic devices. Even now that she was 14 years old and everyone else owned a phone, she barely even looked at a TV or a computer.

It was clear that she was going to be a scholar of some sort or a biologist in the future. There was no reason to push anything else on her.

"I think I'm ready. What do you think, mama?", Lucinda asked her mother, looking at her with chocolate brown eyes.

Her mother got a spoon and scooped up a bit of the sauce, blowing on it to cool it off quicker. She tasted it, surprised at the strong spicy flavor filling her mouth. "Not bad, dear. Tell me. What did you secretly add while I wasn't looking?"

Lucinda grinned. "Oregano."

"Perfect choice. Now let's set up the table. Your father should be back any minute now. Tell me, how was school today?"

"Oh, the usual. Boring and people being annoying. Did you know that a talent show was coming up? My music teacher told me to enter for a reason that's beyond me. I mean, did she never hear me sing or play any instrument really? I suck!"

Laughter filled the small household as the sun set, darkness reaching out across the sky until only a few stars lightened up the world.

Life was simple, but for the Stirpis family it was the perfect life. They couldn't ask for more.

>>>><<<<

Gladiolus and Clarus stood in the throne room, the majestic hall empty except for the King. He was sitting on the throne, a frown etched on his face as he listened to the story the father and son duo was telling him.

"And you are certain she went into Crestholm Channels?", Regis asked, leaning forward stiffly. In the most recent years, his appearance had faded. He looked older than he actually was.

Clarus nodded, taking a step forward. He knew how his friend and king must be feeling. Hearing about the supposed death of a child was never the easiest, especially for a father. They shared a sad look. "We are. The alleys and stairs led into a dead end and the only thing there was was the barricaded entrance to it. I'm not sure how she managed to get in, but there was no other way out unless she was able to teleport...which I doubt."

The king sighed, running a hand across his face. What was he supposed to tell them? The channels were abandoned for a reason. Ordering some of the Kingsglaives to search for any hints of the girl wasn't the best option. Granted, there was the chance of them at least retrieving a corpse. However, the daemons down there might have very well devoured her body by then.

"May I speak, Your Majesty?"

Regis and Clarus both looked to the young teen who stepped forward confidently, his posture tense. Regis waved his hand, allowing Clarus to speak his mind.

"I don't think she's dead", Gladiolus said, eyes furrowed. "I have a feeling she's still alive and somewhere in this city."

"Why do you think so, Gladio?" His father looked confused.

"She seemed to know exactly where she had to go, so the area definitely wasn't new to her. It made no sense. On top of that, although I'm not too sure about it, I think I remember seeing her face around Noctis' school.”

The two adults stilled, thoughtfully looking at the young teen as he shifted around in place, uncomfortable with all the attention.

“Why would you think so?”

Gladio smiled. “Iris goes to the same school and once told me about a few of the students she met there. She was fascinated by a young girl who helped out at the school’s library since she didn’t really interact a lot with people and she had a unique hair colour for an Insomnia citizen. If I remember it correctly, she said she had caramel brown hair. Just like the girl we saw.”

The story was far fetched. A girl the same age as Iris' capable of leaving the city through the Crestholm Channels?

"It might be worth a try to talk to her. " Regis looked at Clarus. “Please accompany Noctis to the school tomorrow and try to bring her to me. Keep it a secret from the rest; we don't want them to unnecessarily worry about a possible intruder.”

"Of course. If it really is her, what will you do with her?”

"It all depends on who she is and why she's doing this. Gladiolus, what's her name?”

"Lucinda. I don't know her last name”, he answered immediately.

“Good. You two are dismissed now. Let's just hope she isn't a spy. It would bring chaos if she really were to be...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone and Happy New Year!  
> It's finally time to publish my Final Fantasy 15 fanfiction that I've been working on for more than half a year now. :D  
> It's far from being done, but I decided that now was as good of a time as any to start with uploading it to AO3.
> 
> Please leave some comments! I'd really like to hear how you liked these first parts of the story and if there's anything you don't like. 
> 
> Thanks and hope I'll see you again!


	4. A Proposal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back to my fanfiction!  
> I'll post every Sunday around evening. :)

Lucinda was already sitting dressed and ready on her bed when her alarm clock rang. That night, she had barely been able to get a decent amount of sleep in, mind running with the thought of having been found out.

Those two people had only seen her for a few moments and she went into Crestholm Channels, a place well-known for its daemon's nesting places. They had to think she was dead, they even said so. There was absolutely nothing to worry about. Right?

Yet even so, it didn't help the irrational fear that deeply set its root in her brain and kept her up that night.

Because there had been nothing else to do, Lucinda used the spare time to sort her notebooks and notes, keeping a list which stated where she found each beast or plant. It wasn't the most exciting work and she had often found herself dozing off before a nightmare had her snapping out of it.

She yawned loudly, holding a hand up to her mouth. She stood up and went into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Inside one of her mother's make up bags, she found some concealer and quickly applied it, successfully hiding the dark bags under her brown eyes. Her parents would be unnecessarily worried if they noticed her lack of sleep.

Finishing in the bathroom, she went out and into the kitchen where her mother stood, dressed and already humming a cheerful melody to herself.

"Good morning, dear. How did you sleep?"

"I slept well, thanks. What's for breakfast?"

"Just some bread with strawberry marmalade. It's your father's day off today."

"That's good. He needs the rest."

Moreover, it meant she wasn't able to sneak out of the city today. Her father loved spending his free days with his wife and daughter. They'd either be going out for a shopping spree or having a game evening, depending on his mood. Sometimes they just watched a movie. Other times they visited family friends to catch up a bit.

Mother and daughter spent the morning in silence, eating and cleaning up after themselves.

Once it was time to leave, Lucinda grabbed her bag and pecked her mother's cheek. "Bye, mama. Have a good day."

"I will, dear. Don't forget to pay attention in class!"

"Yes, yes."

Both of them knew she wouldn't be doing this.

The school wasn't very far from their home. It was a big, modern building with a high fence surrounding it to keep out unwanted people. The walls were white, the floor inside was always freshly polished and the windows were so clean that it was almost absurd.

All to make sure the little prince had nothing to complain about to his father.

She had never once seen Noctis interact with any of the other students and she doubted that he'd ever complain to the King even if something was wrong. He just didn't appear to be that type of person for all he was a brooding loner.

Arms were thrown around Lucinda from behind and she lurched forward, falling flat onto her stomach. She groaned loudly at the pain on her cheek and knees, feeling a warm liquid slowly running down her skin onto the ground.

"What the hell?!", she hissed, snapping her head back to look at a broadly smiling Amanda. "Manda! That hurt!"

Amanda giggled, rolling off of her and then standing up. She brushed her fingers through her short hair, holding out her hand to her friend.

"Sorry, Cinda~ I just had the urge to glomp you all of a sudden."

She grabbed her friend’s hand, her friend easily hauling her up onto her feet. Lucinda held a hand to her cheek, feeling the blood on it. "A warning would be nice next time. Thanks to you I already have to go to the nurse now."

"Sorry. Want me to come with you?" At least Amanda had the decency to look slightly ashamed.

"Yes, please."

Amanda was her oldest friend and the daughter of a renowned hotel manager couple. They met in kindergarten and somehow hit it off immediately. Amanda was the bubbly one of them both, always able to lift someone's mood and help one out even if they disliked her. Over the course of time, she befriended many people.

Even so she stayed around Lucinda, who was dubbed 'the quiet girl' in school. The one who didn't have any other friends and didn't care to make more. Amanda has always been enough for her.

"How did that meeting yesterday go?", she asked her friend, ignoring the throbbing in her knees and cheek. It burnt.

"It went well", Amanda chirped, grinning at her. "Truth be told, it was boring to sit among all those elderly geezers, but my father said my suggestions were great and that they'd consider them. He said he'd even name a hotel after me if I managed to make an impression on the others! Just imagine it!"

"Hotel Amanda Leville...has a weird ring to it", Lucinda deadpanned as she opened the door to the nurse's office, earning a pout in return to her words.

"You're mean, Cinda."

"Maybe so."

She stepped in and closed the door behind them, looking around to find the room empty. A sigh left her lips and she plopped down on a chair in the corner, putting her bag down on the tiled floor next to her.

She didn't mind going to class bloodied and bruised. However the last time she did that, the teacher sent her straight here, scolding her for being so careless and not getting her wounds treated immediately. It's not her fault that she wasn't bothered by mere paper-cuts on her hands.

Lucinda looked back to Amanda as she heard her shuffling in place, seeing a frown on her face. Her blue eyes darkened and flitted around in unease. She also looked paler than usual all of a sudden.

"Manda, what's wrong?", she asked carefully, keeping her tone level to not irritate her more. Her friend often was like this. Giddy one moment, broody the next. And it usually didn't end well.

Amanda looked at her, pupils blown wide. "Something feels off. I don't know what it is though...Just...be careful, okay? I...I have to go. See you later, Cinda."

Lucinda watched her go, heart fluttering in her chest. A dark feeling settled in her stomach.

They didn't think she was alive... did they?

>>>><<<<

Clarus Amicitia was a mountain of a man and the principal did not know what to make of him. Tall, dark, and muscular were the best ways to describe him, obviously, and he walked with purpose and pride, showing off the Crownsguard clothes with no hesitance.

Moreover, he was sitting in the chair in front of her, leaned back in a forced casual manner.

"Good morning, Mister Amicitia", the principal managed to speak after several minutes of foreboding quiet, sweat dripping down the side of her face. It was too warm in the room and the gaze of the man bore straight into her very being. "It's an honor to have one of the Crownsguard in our school. How may I be of help to you?"

Clarus blinked. She gulped. "I've come under direct orders of King Regis, Miss Batons. We are looking for a certain girl by the name of Lucinda. Thanks to my daughter Iris I know that she goes to this school. Can you maybe help me find her?”

“Lucinda...?”

The principal thought, tilting her head from side to side. The name sounded familiar as she did hear it a few times already. But why and where?

She stood up and went to the container on one side of the room, opening a drawer. The classified student files were in there, usually locked up. She only left it open during the day when she was in the room for easier access in case she needed to grab a file.

Finding the file she was looking for, she sat back down in her office chair. Inside the file was a picture that she took and handed to the Crownsguard. “Is this maybe the girl you're looking for? We have a lot of students, but she was the first one I could think of because of several teacher complaints. If it's not her, I can-”

“No, you don't have to. I think this is the girl we're looking for”, Clarus interrupted her, keeping his voice level as he eyed the picture. They definitely had the same hair colour and although he hadn't seen her face enough to memorize it, he was sure that was her.

He handed the principal the picture back and watched as she put the file back into the container. “Can you tell me more about her? Why are there complaints about her?”

The principal sighed and took a sip of her cold tea. If it had been anyone else, she'd say nothing at all, but defying a Crownsguard was not on her to do list. “Although her grades are average, she seldom pays attention to class. As she told me in a private chat between us, she wants to be a biologist in the future, or take any career that revolves around going out into nature. Other than that, though, she's a good kid. Doesn't disrupt the class, always nice when spoken to...whenever she feels like it, she even helps out in our school library.”

Clarus nodded. “Thank you. Can you call her here? The King wants to talk with her and I am to bring her to him.”

“Of course. Who am I to refuse the King's orders? Charles?” She called out the name, looking at the door.

The old secretary from before opened the door, peeking inside the room. “Yes, Mrs. Benwah?”

“Can you please fetch Lucinda Stirpis from Class 7-B? Tell her to bring her bag with her.”

“Of course, Miss Benwah. I'll be right back.”

As the man hastily left, the principal dared to narrow her eyes at the man sitting in front of her. “Although I know that you are part of the Crownsguard, I wish for Lucinda to come back whole. I know it is not my place to speak, but I can assure you that Lucinda never did anything wrong. So please, bring her back whole to my school.”

“I'm sorry, Mrs. Benwah. This may be your school, but king's orders can't be defied. But from what I've heard just now, nothing will happen to her.”

The rest of the wait was spent in tense silence, neither of them liking each other's company.

Finally the secretary came back and opened the door for the young teenager, who entered hesitantly. “Good morning, Miss Benwah.”

"Good morning, Lucinda. Mister Amicitia here is looking for you. He's going to take you to the king.”

Lucinda froze in the door, eyes going wide as she recognized the man from yesterday. His eyes zeroed in on her and took in her appearance slowly. She could tell that he recognized her by the spark in his eyes.

“Hello, Lucinda. It's nice to meet you”, he said smoothly, standing up and holding his hand out to her.

She stiffly moved her hand and shook his, the corner of her lips progressively sinking lower. “It's an honor to meet you, Mister Amicitia.”

“I'll be escorting you to the king. Come, let's not waste any more time. Thank you for your help, Miss Benwah.”

As the man turned to leave, the principal frowned at her student. She saw the barely hidden shock and fear in them. “I'm sure it'll be okay, Lucinda.”

The man placed a hand on Lucinda's shoulder and maneuvered her out of the room into the long hallway. Their steps echoed through it as they walked side by side, his hand not once leaving her body. She didn't say a word, staring straight ahead and doing her best to stay calm.

Her heart was beating erratically, ready to burst out of her chest. It was too hot in the long school uniform, the sweat making it cling to her skin uncomfortably. She wanted to run away, out into the wild outside the Wall. Nothing harmed her there. The air was clean. There were lots of interesting beasts she wanted to watch.

"Am I in trouble?"

The words surprised herself and she frowned, wondering why she had asked them. It was a dumb question as she naturally would be. After all it wasn't any day you found a citizen sneaking in and out of the city.

Clarus looked down at the small girl, taking note of the plaster on her cheek and the slightly torn over-knee socks. Hidden by the sleeves of the uniform jacket and barely visible was a cuff.

Tears pooled in her eyes, but she didn't notice them.

"You might well be", he said, trying to sound as gentle as possible. She was just a teenager, not a threat. "The King will decide."

"I see."

The ride to the Citadel was quiet, Lucinda looking out of the car while Clarus focused on driving. The streets were jammed due to the early morning traffic, people on their way to work.

By the time they arrived at the grand skyscraper, it was 10am. Clarus and Lucinda got out of the car and she followed him to the entrance, the guards opening it immediately.

Again, fear set in as they stepped into an elevator and she closed her eyes, tightly holding onto the railing. She was a child. They wouldn't hurt her, right?

But what if they saw her as an enemy, a threat to Lucis? What if they thought she was a traitor?

She didn't want to die, but she didn't want to be exiled either. Her family lived here. Amanda lived here. She wasn't safe outside the city either thanks to Niflheim slowly eradicating all the towns and cities in Lucis.

What was she to do?

The elevator pinged as they reached the highest level and they stepped out, Clarus first. He went straight towards the doors and opened them, motioning her to go into the room that lay beyond. Lucinda wanted to take a better look at the paintings on the wall, though she decided it was best to not disobey him for now.

The throne room of the Citadel looked more fantastic than in pictures and videos. Its golden throne was surrounded by elaborate metalwork and glowed in the sunlight shining through the big windows.

King Regis sat on it, his eyes going from his friend to the girl accompanying him. "That's the girl you talked about?"

"Definitely, Your Highness."

"What's your name, girl?"

Lucinda stirred, eyes moving from the intricate chandelier on the ceiling to the King, taking a step back. She hadn't seen him there before, too caught up in the almost ancient yet overwhelmingly modern beauty of this place.

"I...my name is Lucinda Stirpis", she said, body shaking.

Regis shook his head, noting the fear in her eyes and body. "Don't be scared, young one. I only wish to talk to you. As long as you aren't a Niflheim spy, there's nothing for you to fear."

Taking a deep breath, she curtly nodded her head, holding her hands close to her chest. The fingers of her left hand twitched. She didn't voice how stupid it was. Even in situations like these, spies probably wouldn't just openly tell them they actually worked for the empire.

"Is it true that you were outside the Wall?"

"Yes...your Highness." She spoke slowly, unsure of the right way to address him.

"And you went through the Crestholm Channels?"

"I did."

Both of the men shared a quick look.

"Insomnia's old sewer system does not have a connection to the new one", Clarus said thoughtfully, his arms crossed. The sleeves of his jacket bulged. "And it is full of beasts and daemons that are very powerful.."

"It is true that there are daemons, but your first statement is wrong." Lucinda shivered as Clarus momentarily glared at her in a reprimanding way. "I'm sorry...There is a tunnel that connects both the new and the old system. Demons don't breach it, most likely because of the Crystal's influence.”

"Where is it exactly?"

It was that moment that Lucinda hesitated, her hands fisting her blazer tightly. She looked at the ground. "I don't want to say it. It's my secret way. I assure you that I never told anyone about it, but...I..."

"It's okay, Lucinda", Regis intercepted her, smiling at the young girl. A secret was a secret and even more important for children. He will ask for that information again one day, but she was almost bursting, afraid of their judgment. "Answer me two more questions. Why do you leave the city and how come you can go through Crestholm Channels unscathed?"

"I don't pay attention to the daemons and they leave me alone in return", she answered simply. "I leave because nature interests me more than city life. The way beasts interact with one another, their habits...It's so much more interesting than anything inside the walls."

"I see."

This was quite the difficult case. The girl certainly didn't sound like a traitor and didn't look like one either, yet in times like these they could never be sure. At the same time her eyes were sincere, glowing and practically begging for him to believe her.

She had known of that tunnel for a long time now; the Empire has had enough time to infiltrate the city by now even at the cost of a few Magiteks. They wouldn't bide their sweet time for the perfect timing, it wasn't the Empire's thing. They were harsh and brutal, quick to attack like a snake.

Although he can't allow the girl to walk the streets by herself anymore. There might be no harm in what she was doing, her intent apparently pure, but it was still against the law to leave the city without further notice.

If the beasts didn't attack her, however...

"Tell me, Lucinda. What do you think of being part of Prince Noctis' Crownsguard?"


	5. The Prince

Lucinda stared up at the king, eyes and mouth opened wide. She tried to process his words, gears turning in her head as realization slowly sunk in.

The King had asked her to be a part of the prince's Crownsguard.

Her, the quiet girl that knew neither how to fight nor do anything else except for studying daemons and nature. The girl that might as well be a traitor to the Kingdom of Lucis.

She gulped, a clot having formed in the back of her throat. "What if I refuse?"

"You'll be free to leave the Citadel", Regis answered, pausing to ponder about his next words. "However, we are forced to give you a bracelet that sends us your location whenever you sneak out of the city and we'll bring you back inside; and guards will be ordered to keep watch over you. If you do accept, I'll give you an electronic pass to freely leave the city once a week with the company of Clarus' son Gladiolus as long as you stay close to the wall.”

The name Gladiolus sounded familiar. Didn't Clarus call that boy this name? So they really were family then.

Lucinda nodded, looking at the floor. Her thoughts quickly were lost as she noticed the weird pattern carved into the stone before silver liquid was poured into it to even it up again. She followed the lines with her eyes, connecting them and trying to understand.

Someone cleared their throat and Lucinda snapped her head up, head swimming momentarily before coming back out of the haze. She frowned, bringing a hand up to rub her forehead, forgetting the lines immediately.

"I apologize. I...I accept."

Lucinda wrapped her arms around herself. She had no idea if this decision was the best, but it seemed like it. Moreover, she had nothing to lose by becoming a well-respected Crownsguard member. Her parents will be delighted to hear she found purpose in her life at least that didn't include nature or daemons.

Regis smiled. "I'm glad to hear that. Clarus will bring you to Gladio who will show you around the Citadel and bring you to Cor later, who'll be in charge of your training. You'll have an official initiation test once you're ready for that, so until that you'll only be a Crownsguard in training.”

She thought about his words, mind wandering to all the possible things she might have to do once she was in the Crownsguard. A shiver ran down her spine and she looked away to the row of windows on one side of the room. “I see. How long will the training take?”

“It all depends on how fast you pick up on things and how good you are at using several weapons”, Clarus said. “On average it takes two to four years. Seeing as you have never worked with weapons before, most likely longer.”

Lucinda sighed quietly, nodding. “Okay, I see. What about school, though?”

“Cor will set up a training plan with you, but you'll most likely stay in school for the first half of the day and come to the Citadel later. Do you have any other questions for now?”

Lucinda shook her head. “No, thank you.”

“That's settled then. There's only one more thing...” The King's smile dropped, seriousness replacing the soothing expression he wore before. “I ask you not to tell anyone about this whole situation. On the papers it will say that you were recommended by Clarus to join with no specific reason. The next few years will be a way for the Crownsguard to evaluate you. None of them are to know why we brought you here originally.”

“I understand, Your Highness.”

“And Lucinda, even though you will train to be a Crownsguard starting today, you were not cleared of suspicion. Times are rough and we can never be too sure.

“Of course, Your Highness.”

The tension in Regis' shoulders visibly faded and he leaned back. “That is all then. I hope you won't disappoint us, Lucinda.”

“I will give it my best.”

Her head was spinning as she was escorted out of the throne room and back to the elevator. As they waited for it to arrive on their floor, Clarus turned to Lucinda and worriedly looked at her.

“How are you feeling, Lucinda?”

Overwhelmed. Confused. Frustrated to some extent.

“I don't know”, she said with as steady of a voice as she managed. “It's all a bit much.”

The man nodded, some of the worry leaving his face as they stepped into the elevator and he pressed a button. “Understandably so. Becoming a Crownsguard is respectable, but unlike us you haven't been training for it your whole life.”

“It's not even that, to be honest. I'm more annoyed by myself for not being more careful. I've been sleeping out for a few months now and never once has anyone discovered.” Lucinda unclenched her jaw, noticing the tension was starting to hurt her teeth.

Clarus raised an eyebrow at her. “How did you come across that tunnel?”

“Oh, a book about the Crestholm Channels mentioned the possibility of one existing. I wasn't too sure, but I decided to give it a try anyhow. And look there, I found it after several weeks of smelling like a sewer rat.”

“I really hope you will tell us about it. Although the Crestholm Channels are dangerous, it's for our own safety to have it watched”, Clarus reminded her.

Lucinda hesitated. “I know.”

“Trust us, Lucinda. It's only for our best.”

“I'm sorry.”

She hadn't realized that they had already left the elevator again, walking through long hallways. Clashing sounds and pained groans came from behind the several doors along the walls. If she had to take a guess, she'd say they were in the training area of the Citadel.

They went through the door on the far left side, entering a small training hall. In the center of the room, standing opposite each other on mats, were two boys her age. Their arms were up, ready to launch a punch at each other. Gladio was the first to notice them and he motioned at the other boy to stand by, turning around hastily.

He didn't say anything at first, merely taking in her appearance. She was wearing the uniform of Insomnia's most prestigious high school that also acted as a middle and junior high. A black cuff peaked through the sleeve on her left arm. Now that he was actually able to get a good look of her, he noted that she didn't look like much.

“Gladio, this is Lucinda Stirpis. She'll be a Crownsguard-in-training starting today. Can you show her around the Citadel and later bring her to Cor?”, Clarus introduced her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

She frowned and stepped aside a bit, uncomfortable by the sudden touch. Clarus wasn't too bothered by it as he continued. “You can continue your training later this day.”

“Sure, I can do that. Can Ignis come with us?”

“I don't have anything against that. Be nice to her, boys.”

Lucinda didn't look back as Clarus left her alone with them, shifting in place as they watched her curiously.

“Nice to meet you. I'm Ignis Scientia”, one of them finally spoke up, stepping forward and holding his hand out to her.

Lucinda shook it, noting the rough skin on his palm. “Nice to meet you, too. As Clarus said, I'm Lucinda Stirpis. Sorry for intruding on your training.”

“No problem. Come on, the sooner we get this over with, we can go back to training.”

As they walked through the Citadel, they talked about various things, although mainly the training she'd most likely undergo. When asked why she was suddenly asked to be in the Crownsguard, she said she was recommended by Clarus. Ignis didn't seem to care too much. Gladio however obviously knew it was a lie by the look he gave her, but she ignored it. The King asked her to keep it under wraps, so she was going to do just that.

Finally they brought her to Cor's office and left her, saying they'll be looking forward to training with her. Gladio very clearly wanted to talk with her more, probably about how she was outside the Wall and why, but with Ignis there he couldn't and so he accepted his fate.

Ignoring the throbbing in her head from the long day, Lucinda knocked on the door and entered into it, immediately overwhelmed by the presence of the man they called The Immortal. He was sitting in his office chair, papers neatly stacked on the desk in front of him that he was looking through.

“Welcome, Lucinda. Take a seat.” Even his voice held power and she felt her muscles tensed up for the umpteenth time today as she stiffly sat down on the chair opposite of him.

She waited patiently for him to speak, intimidated by Cor.

“I'll be honest with you”, he at last said, eyes cold as he looked her straight in the eyes. “I don't trust you. The King and Clarus are both vouching for you, but you came out of nowhere. Once I have time, I'll take a look at you and your family. It's my job to make sure the royal family is safe. And I'm taking this very seriously.”

“Of course. I expected something like this.”

“Good. Now that this is out of the way, let's talk about your schedule.”

He pulled out a paper and handed it to her. “Until lunch, you'll stay in school. Then you are going to the Citadel for training that lasts the whole afternoon until 4PM. You will also spend the day from 9AM to 2PM on Saturdays here, which means Sundays are your only days off. You have a lot to catch up on and you need to spend as much time as you can on training and getting better.”

Lucinda just listened to him talk about her future tasks and plans, head throbbing from all the things happening today. She didn't say anything unless he directly asked her a question, sitting quietly on the chair otherwise.

This was going to be harder than she thought if she had to show the Cor Leonis that she was not a danger to the king and the prince.

>>>><<<<

Lucinda was sitting on a plush leather chair in a room on a higher level of the Citadel, holding a cup of green tea that she was sipping on. The throbbing in her forehead dulled as a sense of calmness washed over her despite the impending meeting with the prince she had.

This was going to be the first time that she would ever personally talk to the prince. She had seen him around the Middle High buildings at her school of course, the people crowding around him. Even so he never spoke a lot with people, mostly just nudging through the throng until they gave way and let him leave.

It was sad in a way, but she didn't feel any pity for him. He chose to act like this. Unless it was a way to keep false friends away. There were a lot of those at their school.

Gladio and Ignis had wanted to stay with her, maybe to keep an eye on her, but the king and Clarus had ushered them out, saying it was for the best if the two of them talked in private at first. Servants had brought tea and cake and then she was alone, waiting for the prince to come.  
She was just picking at the chocolate cake with a fork as the door opened and she heard shuffling. Lucinda raised her eyes and stood up, carefully putting the plate away.

Noctis was wary of her, that much she could see. “So, you are going to be one of my new protectors?”

“I think the term guard dog seems to be more adequate, but yes. My name is Lucinda. It's a pleasure to meet you.” Even to her own ears she sounded insecure despite the small joke.

At least it did its job and he cracked the tiniest smile as he sat down on the other leather chair. “Yeah, they really are guard dogs and my friends.”

He commenced to pick up a chocolate cake and eat it while Lucinda went back to drinking her tea. She didn't know what to say, so she'd leave it up to the prince to start talking to her.

“You go to the same school as me?”, he asked after a while. “Dumb question considering you're wearing the uniform...”

“Yes, I am. I'm two grades above you though.” Lucinda placed down the empty cup of tea, leaning back in her chair.

“I see.”

She thought getting lectured by a suspicious Cor was bad, but this was worse. Noctis obviously felt uncomfortable and didn't try too much to engage in a conversation with her. She tried several times to get him out of his shell, only for him to respond curtly.

After almost an hour of trying, she suppressed a groan. “Noctis, let me be honest with you. This is a very uncomfortable situation for the both of us. You are getting a new guard dog. I am here and will start as a Crownsguard-in-training out of the blue. None of us like it, so let's just agree that we might not be happy about this, we should at least try to get along.”

Noctis was stunned by her words. People often didn't speak to him as open as Lucinda did, scared of the repercussions of that. His cheeks started to burn and he looked away, putting a hand on his mouth. “Sorry...”, he mumbled.

“Don't apologize. You're the prince. People often just want to befriend you because of the advantages such a friendship has. It's natural for you to not just accept anyone barging into your life like I am. Just know that even though you will be my king in the future, I really don't care about any of that. Right now, you're just a person like any other that just has the luck of being a prince.”

Surprisingly for him, Lucinda's words had quite the effect on Noctis. He felt himself relaxing, calmed by the honesty in her voice. “Yeah, I'm sorry. It's exactly like you said. I don't trust people.”

“Then let me repeat myself. We don't have to like each other immediately, but at least try to get along with me for the time being. I'm just training for now. It'll be decided later on if I'm going to be a Crownsguard for real or not. Think you can do that?”

The smile she had on her face was beautiful. It even reached her eyes. The sunlight turned golden as it neared sunset, giving her hair a creamy glow.

“Yeah, sure.”

“Good. Because I'm going to try my best in every aspect – including being your friend.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gosh, this week has been really stressful for me.  
> My knee is hurting really bad and my doc appointment is on Tuesday - a full week of pain? I could live without that q.q


	6. Days Gone By

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the radio-silence last week! Work has been really exhausting lately, so I took a break from my PC. But I'll be back to posting every Sunday now.  
> I also got my first kudos on the story. Thank you so much!  
> Now, enjoy!

Life changed in a way Lucinda had totally expected it to after accepting the King's proposal to be in Noctis' Crownsguard.

She had school until noon where she was bombarded by unimportant information she didn't want to have. On top of that she regularly had to avoid other students due to their noisy nature.

She had tried to keep her new position a secret, however rumours quickly spread throughout the school thanks to Amanda. As much as she liked the girl, she didn't know how to shut her mouth at times, much to Lucinda's dismay.

On top of that, she had to suffer being looked at weirdly whenever she decided to spend time with Noctis. Some were obviously jealous, others still didn't seem to get that being a Crownsguard-in-training meant to spend time with their future king. They would very loudly talk about them and then, when confronted, ignore them and giggle to themselves.

It was a nightmare she wished would end the moment it started.

Thinking back to that fateful day that decided the rest of her life for her made her groan because of her own stupidity. She had gone through it several times, coming up with ways that would have made it so much harder for them to find her upon discovery. But now it was too late to think of those.

The good thing about this whole situation was her ticket to freedom - a small card that the guards at the gate scanned. She was allowed to leave the city one day a week and while that wasn't enough as she often struggled to move at all after training, it mostly helped to keep her mind at ease.

Although one part of her longed to return to the Crestholm Channels and watch the daemons there, especially on days like this one.

Furthermore she was slowly gaining people's trust.

At first Cor had been watching her like a hawk whenever he supervised her training and sometimes outside of it. It was uncomfortable and scary, her privacy being invaded to an extent she disliked going out at all. Even Clarus and Gladio didn't watch her as much as The Immortal did and they, too, were suspicious of her.

Luckily, after almost a year, he slowly got off her back, and so did all the others. They warmed up to her and once she was a constant presence in their lives, they had an easier time seeing that she was just a normal girl. Mostly, anyhow.

By now it's been almost one and a half year since she accepted the King's offer, and it has been quite the ride for her.

The only thing not going so well was the training.

"Stand back up! The longer you stay on the ground, the faster you'll be dead!"

Cor's voice rang in her ears and she winced, pushing herself up by her hands. She heard the soft sound of a blade cutting through the air and quickly rolled aside, barely able to dodge the wooden blade that buried itself in the earth where she had been only seconds ago.

She pushed herself up into a kneeling position and was about to get up as the wood hit her square in her back and pushed her face forward into the earth. Her scream came out muffled and tears ran down her cheeks.

"Stop."

Lucinda looked up. Gladio was holding a hand to her, bent down to a more comfortable height. She grabbed it and he hoisted her up, steadying her as she staggered at the sudden shift.

Earth and grass clung to her skin and clothes. The complete opposite of Gladio, who didn't even have a bruise on him. Even his hair was still perfectly gelled back.

She held a hand to her mouth and panted into it, ignoring the way Gladio worriedly looked at her. He had literally knocked the breath out of her and she felt bruises littering the parts of her body he hit with the training sword.

Cor walked up to them, disappointment shining in his dark eyes. It made her heart ache. "You've been training with us for almost two years and yet you still lack the will to fight. You haven't even been able to land a hit on Ignis. How do you want to protect the prince if you can't even protect yourself or fight back?"

Lucinda flinched back, the unnecessarily harsh words slapping her in the face. "I-"

"We understand that this is not how you wanted your life to be", the man known as the Immortal continued, cutting her off. "But you were the one to accept the King's proposal out of your own free will. We did not force you. So live up to it and cast your hesitance to hurt others aside. Otherwise you'll be a disappointment to all of us and you'll never be tested to gain an official position in the Crownsguard."

She didn't know how to respond, mind blanking at the words thrown in her face. Tears gathered in her eyes and her cheeks burnt.

Gladio pulled her away from Cor a bit, shielding her with his body. "Cor, that was way too harsh."

"I agree." Ignis stepped up from the sidelines, his eyes trained on Lucinda's quivering lips and the way her eyes turned glossy. "It is true that it might endanger the prince... maybe a healer position would fit her better than trying to force her into this."

"Ignis, she was recommended as a Crownsguard", Cor retorted, crossing his arms. There was no remorse in his facial expression. "Although now I'm slowly starting to wonder what Clarus saw in her. She's lacking the basic instincts of a fighter.”

They didn't have time to react as Lucinda swiftly turned away and ran off, startling all three males in the garden. Gladio shouted and started after her, her small frame quickly disappearing in the Citadel.

Ignis and Gladio didn't bother with Cor, both running side by side to follow the only girl in their group. Inside the tall building, they passed several guards and servants who held sympathetic looks and pointed in a direction as the two of them passed.

Lucinda didn't take note of anyone in the castle, carelessly sprinting through the labyrinth-like hallways she familiarized herself with long ago. Not thinking about where her brain and feet were taking her; she completely gave the reins over to her subconsciousness.

Cor's words had hit her harder than she liked. She usually didn't let things like that get to her, taking into consideration that she knew she wasn't a good fighter. In fact, she was horrible and none of the training sessions had changed that.

She preferred simply observing, studying living beings. She disliked intentional harm on them, stomach churning just at the thought of ever having to hurt someone.

She understood Cor's reasoning. The slightest hesitation to protect or attack can get Noctis killed. If that happened, it would all be on her, and he couldn't allow that to happen. Something like that would be an absolute disaster.

Lucinda somewhat came to when she reached the bottom of a ladder, shivering in the damp cold of the underground tunnels. She furrowed her eyebrows, wondering how she made it through the whole of the city to here. Although that did explain the burning in her lungs and the ache in her legs.

Shrugging the confusion and disorientation off, she wandered deeper into the tunnel, hands gliding along the dirty and wet walls. Even after years of not coming down here, she still knew where to go.

Once she felt the familiar texture of roughened metal under her fingers, she stopped. Opening the door was a lot harder than usual due to the lack of light down here.

"Where did she go?"

The deep voice of Gladio echoed through the darkness and she froze. It was hard to say how close they were, but she did not give them any chance to find her. She unlocked it, the self-made key she always kept in her pocket even now.

The door screeched, silence following it even as she closed it.

They were probably trying to find her, but they wouldn't know. Even with a flashlight, they shouldn't notice the door. It had the same colour as the walls, covered by rust and dirt, and it was small.

Lucinda took a deep breath, heart beating fast in her chest from having run that long and the prospect of going into the Crestholm Channels without any light source.

She passed through the connecting tunnel by crawling forward on her knees, the darkness around her allowing her no sense of sight or time.

Upon reaching the second door, her heartbeat had slowed and allowed her to relax her body piece by piece. Just like the other one, it gave off a shrill sound, disturbing the beasts in close vicinity. Furious screeching made her head throb and she winced at that.

Compared to the tunnel she went through, the Crestholm Channels were a bit lighter due to some light sources that hadn't faded fully over time. Moreover, there were the daemons that gave off an unearthly light.

Lucinda closed the door and sat down on the slightly wet ground, leaning her back against the cold wall next to it. She closed her eyes, allowing the underground life to take over again.

Screeches and groans sounded through the tunnels, the echoes bouncing back and forth. Claws grinded against the ground and the slurpish gurgling of the slimes. It was soothing, to finally be surrounded by them again.

All worries seemed the ease off of her and she finally found herself relaxing.

It was exactly what she had needed.

A weird clicking sound could be heard close to her, along with the familiar sound of an Ereshkigal's claws scraping on the ground as it hobbled closer. Not letting it disturb her, she allowed sleep to take over her mind as she fell into a sweet slumber.

Until she felt a cold breath fanning her face.

Lucinda's eyes shot open and she immediately froze. Leaning close to her face was an Ereshkigal, its unmistakable face only inches away from her own. She felt all air leaving her lungs at the way too close proximity, willing her body to stay as unmoving as it could.

It tilted its head to the left, then to the right, and back again. Its face was set in its usual scary grin, but the eyes held a curiosity to them she has never seen before in any daemon. Which may very well be because getting close to one wasn't exactly a good idea.

The Ereshkigal didn't stop looking at her, not even bothered by her own eyes staring back at him. Instead it slowly moved its hand until it touched her arm, the cold, rough fingers clamping around her wrist.

Lucinda felt her fingers twitch, a gasp escaping her in fear of it hurting her. However it didn't even lash out, simply letting its crooked fingers trace along her veins. A click sounded from the area of his mouth as it giggled in a twisted manner.

And just like that, it was gone again, jumping away and into the darkness. It left her behind with a fast beating heart and opened mouth.

"It didn't attack me", she whispered, a smile gracing her lips. "It didn't attack me!"

Lucinda scrambled to her feet, walking around the perimeter of the room she was in, not caring how it disturbed some of the other creatures down here. She had to get home and write this whole experience down in her notebook. Hopefully, she didn't forget any of the details.

She went back the way she came, making sure to lock the metal door behind her again. For a moment there she stilled, listening for any footsteps or voices. But everything was quiet.

Lucinda crept through the tunnels carefully until she reached the closest ladder leading up into Insomnia's underground system. She pushed open the plate covering it and climbed out, closing it behind her. Barely anyone was around, this part of the underground walkways usually abandoned by the citizens. It was far out, close to the wall, and the habitants of this area preferred to walk above ground if they had to.

She took the nearest set of stairs, coming out in the middle of a park in the orange light of sunset. The way home was a long one, people eyeing her dirty and bruised appearance.

Luckily, no one bothered her and she found herself home just as the sun went down behind the horizon, darkness enveloping the world.

Her parents were waiting for her, sitting on the couch and holding onto each other. They hadn't looked this worried in...have they ever had to worry about her?

Lucinda couldn't remember.

Melen stood up, arms poised in front of her body in a defensive manner. She was slightly curled into herself as she spoke up. "Gladio and Ignis came to... to tell us about you running off."

Lucinda rubbed her shoulders, looking away. "I thought so."

They both frowned and opened their arms to her. Her heart warmed at the sight and she sat down in between them, closing her eyes as they wrapped their arms around her. She wanted to burst into tears again, but she held them back.

“We were worried about you, dear. Are you okay? They also told us what made you run away”, her father said, pecking her forehead.

She sighed, wishing they wouldn't have said anything. “I'm okay now. I just needed to get some things off my chest, be alone for a while. Things have been hectic.”

“They sure have.” Her mother rubbed her back, allowing her to rest her head on her chest.   
“Ever since you started training to become a Crownsguard, we were just waiting for this, to be honest with you. We know you, dear.”

“Do you think I should have rejected the offer?”, Lucinda asked quietly, voice strained. “I know I'm not Crownsguard material, but...”

Her father spoke up this time, placing a hand on the back of her head and petting it. “If you think it's going to make you happy in the long run, go for it. Only you know what you want. Even if you decide to stop now, we won't hate you. We'll be proud of you no matter what.”

Lucinda sighed in content, letting the words of her father wrap around her heart and soothe it. “Thanks, dad. Thanks, mom. I love you.”  
“We love you, too, dear.”

Lucinda won't give up just yet. She'd continue trying for a while. Not just for herself, but also for the king, and Noctis, and Clarus.

She wasn't going to disappoint anyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you like this chapter. :)  
> I'll try to finish the story of before the Kingsglaive and game events up in around 17 chapters. So please, bear with me until then ^^'


	7. The Kingsglaive

The next day, Cor picked her up from school with one of the king's sleek car to drive her to the Citadel. It was an awfully silent drive, the air tense. Lucinda knew she fucked up by abandoning her training like that, but it really wasn't that big of a thing... right?

Originally she had planned to talk to him about her resolve to finally give in and try to change, but seeing the man brood, she didn't dare to speak up.

After they arrived, she quickly noticed that they didn't go to their usual sparring grounds. They took different turns, less and less servants and guards coming up from different hallways.

A bad feeling settled itself in her gut and she shivered, goosebumps forming on her skin.

They stopped in front of a wooden door, the sounds of swords clashing and something ripping through the air faintly coming through it. She also thought she could hear the sound of breaking crystals occasionally.

"This is kind of a drastic measure, however we think it's best for you", Cor started, voice as indifferent as usual. His hard eyes focused on her, making her bristle up and meet them head on. "You hesitate to kill. You're a pacifist through and through. It wouldn't matter if you were a simple civilian, but Clarus recommended you for Noctis' Crownsguard. We cannot allow you to slack. Thus, we decided to have you train with the Kingsglaive for several months.”

Lucinda's eyes widened, but before she had time to react, Cor opened the door and forced her to go inside, big hand on her shoulder. The Glaives immediately assembled, either sitting down or standing up straight to await further instructions.

As far as she knew, Titus Drautos was the captain of the Kingsglaive, a man well-known for his valor and strength. Although the Glaives themselves were hated by most of Insomnia.

The Kingsglaive were formed as a last effort against the Niflheim Empire, an elite group of soldiers blessed with the monarch's magic. However even after years of battles, never once did they win any. Furthermore the empire kept pushing the frontlines back.

And Cor wanted her to work with them?

Lucinda didn't think badly of the Glaives. They were just doing the job and it's not their fault that the Empire kept coming up with new ways to kill and torture them. She might have no idea what went on on the frontline exactly, but she knew it couldn't be good.

"Glaives, this is Lucinda Stirpis. For at least six months, she'll train with you. You are to teach her everything you know." Cor's eyes wondered the ranks of curious people, picking out a tall, dark-haired man. "Nyx, you'll be her supervisor. If anything is off, inform me. Captain Drautos knows of her presence here, but it is your task to keep an eye on her."

The man saluted. "Understood, sir."

"Good. Back to training."

Lucinda watched with fearful eyes as Cor left, not even giving her a last look as the door fell close behind him. He hadn't even given her a chance to refuse or speak up. She hesitantly turned back around to the man still standing there, along with a beautiful woman.

Nyx, as Cor had called him, appeared to be pretty young, around the age of 20. He had dark grey hair and light eyes. Subtle markings on his face made her observe him more. At first they looked like scars, but a closer look showed her that they must be tattoos. One was on his right cheek, another underneath his left eye. A third went down his neck and more were on his ears.

All in all, he didn't look like a typical Insomnian citizen.

If she remembered correctly, most of the Kingsglaive formerly lived outside the capital. Ghalad, for example, was one just one of the many areas the Empire took control over.

The woman had brown hair loosely tied up in a bun and brown eyes. Tall, muscular, yet still feminine and somewhat elegant to the eye. Her skin was fair and her lips rosy.

Lucinda silently hoped she would look this good as an adult.

Nyx cleared his throat, effectively catching her attention. He took note of her interest, the way she observed even the most useless detail. Especially his tattoos which no one ever bothered to look at.

"My name is Nyx Ulric. This is Crowe Altius", he introduced the two of them, watching as his friend smiled reassuringly at the girl.

Lucinda bit in her bottom lip, nibbling on it. She was keenly aware of the other Glaives still watching them although they have returned to their trainings. "Lucinda Stirpis...sir. It's nice to meet you both."

He waved his hand in a dismissive motion as Crowe chuckled. "Just call me by my name. I don't do any of that leader stuff."

"You surely don't." The older female amiably punched him in the shoulder. "Sorry that you're stuck with him. He's too stiff and serious most of the time."

"That's basically our job, Crowe."

"Whatever you say, Nyx."

The two seemed to have forgotten Lucinda, lost in their bickering, so she used the time to steal herself away to the grand openings in the room. It opened into an arena where the other Kingsglaives warped around, crystallic blue lights following them around.

Lucinda's fingers twitched.

Their speed was incredible, almost hard to follow. In the blink of an eye, they were in a different place, only the crystal-like substances showing their path. Though even those were rather straight, not curved the slightest bit.

They apparently couldn't go through walls or solid objects in general either. To get around some, she saw them stopping their warp to climb or crawl behind something.

It was quite the sight to see.

"The king's power allows us to use the royal family's magic."

Lucinda glanced sideways, seeing that Crowe and Nyx had joined her at the opening.

“I know. I read about it.” Lucinda tilted her head from side to side, contemplating if digging deeper was worth it. “Does everyone have the same abilities? How are you even able to use the king's magic?”

“Technically, yes. However it's more of a preference and affinity thing. Nyx prefers is on a good way of becoming one of our best warpers. I tend to help out from the back using elementary magic”, Crowe said, stretching her arms above her head. “We are taught everything we need to know, but you can't force someone who's inapt at something to work more on that, so we have specialized unit.”

Lucinda sighed, rapidly tapping her foot against the edge. "Yeah, but how can you use it? That's what I don't understand. Simple vows can't be enough.”

"Sorry, Lucinda, even we don't have an answer to that. You'd have to ask the king himself and I don't think he'd answer your question.”

She was surprised by her own eagerness to learn more about magic. She knew that especially daemons, too, had a close bond with magic, albeit a darker version of it. However it just never sparked her interest until now.

Good thing she had several months to learn more about it from a viable source.

>>>><<<<

Lucinda stared blankly up at the ceiling, thoughts drifting back to the past few days. This was actually the first time in three weeks that she had been allowed to go back home. The battlefields had been more hectic lately and they couldn't spare losing even the smallest of help.

The war was getting worse by the day. More and more Glaives were sent out to fight in those battles. A lot of them came back injured, some dead. Few came out unscathed.

Back when Cor introduced her to the Kingsglaives and told her they'd train her for some time, she did not expect to have to learn medical aid. She did not expect to see people with their heads bitten off or their stomach clawed open. And most of all she never thought she'd found herself close to the frontlines.

Images flashed in front of her eyes as tears gathered in them.

A man lost his arm.

A woman cast a fire spell too close to her eyes and irreversibly damaged them.

Another was shot by a Magitek soldier during their retreat.

Cor didn't warn her about her tasks. That she was to help the wounded soldiers whenever they came back from another pointless battle. The only reason they spared her from fighting at the frontline was the fact that she was not a full Glaive. She was just an intern of sorts.

It was cruel, really. Had she known what awaited her, she'd have refused and discussed this with Cor.

Lucinda sniffled, wiping her eyes with her sleeves. She still felt the sticky warmth of blood on her fingers even though she had washed them with soap several times now. The ghost feeling clung to her.

The door to her room opened and she turned to look at it, seeing her mom enter and sit down next to her. Melen carefully threaded her fingers through her daughter's greasy hair.

"Lucinda, sweetie. Don't you want to take a shower and clean yourself up a bit?", she asked softly.

"I just wanna lie down a bit", the teenager said, closing her eyes. The horrors of the weeks flashed before her bloodshot eyes and she flinched.

"Come on, dear. I'm sure it will help you relax a bit. I will change your bedsheets in the meantime, okay?" Melen caressed her daughter’s cheek.

"Okay..."

Lucinda slowly moved to get up while her mother pulled out some woolen clothes, handing them to her. She was shaking a tiny bit, eyes unfocused, and Melen had to help her go into the bathroom and undress.

As the warm water finally hit her dirty skin, she regained at least some of her senses.

Even before she was part of the Kingsglaive, she knew that war was terrible. People died. Got hurt. It was a simple, well-known fact. But being in the middle of it all? Seeing those that were hurt?

It was different now that she had connections to the war. She was standing at the sidelines, having to watch as people gave their life for their country. For their home.

Bile rose up in her throat and she gulped to keep it down, ignoring the disgusting taste and the burning feeling it left behind. The first time they forced her to help out in the medical bay, she actually did throw up, the smell of blood and the wounds too much to bear. The second time went better, but she had to empty her stomach that night still. By the third night, her emotions were buried under.

Lucinda rested her head against the tiles as the water ran down her body and washed the dirt off.

At least Cor allowed her to go home for two days and rest. The war wasn't over yet and she was expected back at the Citadel early enough so they could bring her back to the border and help the wounded again.

And again.

Until he finally allowed her to train with the Noctis and the others again.

Speaking of which.

The last time she saw any of them was when around four weeks ago in school. Noctis had followed her around the whole time, worried for her because they had told him she'd be away for a few weeks. He hadn't known what she was going to do back then, but he surely knew now and he will have told the others.

Luckily for her, they wanted to go out and eat with her tomorrow. She'd finally see them again and be able to talk about things that didn't revolve around the war.

Lucinda allowed herself to relax at the thought of her friends that were waiting for her, a smile playing on her lips.

Soon she'll be training with them again. She'd make sure of it.

>>>><<<<

The doorbell rang in the silent household, Melen rushing to open the door. She was more excited than her own daughter to see them, but she didn't care. They were good boys and made sure Lucinda stayed in line.

"Oh, hello, boys", she greeted them, planting a kiss on their cheeks. They blushed, awkwardly shuffling in place. Her eyes wandered to the newcomer, taking in how they made a shush motion with their hands as they hid him with their bodies. She grinned. "I haven't seen you in a long time. How are you?"

"We're fine, Ms. Stirpis. How are you? Is your husband well?", Ignis asked, totally unaffected by his companion's schemes.

"We are, thanks for asking, Ignis."

A door was opened in the apartment and Lucinda appeared next to her mother in casual clothes. Only her mother seemed to notice her slightly slouched back and the glistening bags under her eyes.

At least her eyes lightened up at the sight of her friends.

"Hey guys. What's up?"

"Says the girl that has been MIA for weeks now." Gladio wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pushing her against him. She was taller now and had more muscles than before surprisingly and he stared at her incredulously. "How is life treating you as a Glaive?"

She sighed, leaning her head against his arm. Blood and darkness flashed in her mind. "Could be better, but I'm hoping I can come back to you by the end of the year. I also miss going to school."

Ignis eyed her skeptically as Noctis stepped forward, grinning. "Well, we want you to meet someone."

"Oh?"

He stepped aside, revealing the blonde that had been anxiously buzzing behind him the whole time. He raised his hand. "Uh...hi."

Lucinda chuckled, moving away from Gladio to take his hand and shake it. "Hi. I'm Lucinda Stirpis. Who are you?"

"Uh...Prompto Argentum. Nice to meet you. I have heard lots of things about you."

"Good things, hopefully?"

Prompto blushed furiously and he tried to form a response that wouldn't invoke her wrath and he-

He was stunned by her laugh, the girl throwing her head back and not even holding back. The rest of the guys were chuckling, too, finding amusement in their friend's awkwardness.

"Sorry, sorry." Lucinda wiped her eyes. "Didn't mean to embarrass you. I know that I haven't exactly been the epitome of a good Crownsguard member."

Noctis shook his head. "Seriously. I think you've gotten in more trouble than even me and you know how prone I am to annoy people."

"True."

The girl of the group turned back to Prompto with a smile. At first she was hesitant and unsure, her mind telling her that the boys found a replacement for her... but of course they didn't. She was a part of their group and had been for years.

They wouldn't replace her for anything in the world.

She felt it in her heart and she knew her mind would catch up eventually.

"Now tell me, guys. What have you planned for today? I need to enjoy my free time as much as I can."

"We'll go fishing first and then eat the lunch of your choice."

Lucinda nodded, waving goodbye to her mother as the boys walked off with her.

Yes, she could do this as long as she had her friends.

She wouldn't allow the war to break her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter after two weeks!  
> Sorry for the delay. I think I'll update every two weeks - gives me more time to work on a new chapter. I might have written some already, but I always want to have at least one chapter in between so I have somewhat of a break.
> 
> On another note: Whoever comments first gets a oneshot written by me~  
> I'll do this as a sort of Valentine's Day special, seeing as there is nothing in this fic yet that would allow a V-Day special.
> 
> Not yet at least


	8. The Test [Part 1]

Nyx warped to her backside, slashing at her with his kukris. Lucinda twirled around, raising her lance to shield her body against the attack. The two weapons clanged against each other, the following vibrations making her bite her lip. She pushed against him, eyes narrowed in frustrated determination.

As he jumped back a step, she followed quickly and swiped out the lance. The hit landed on his right hand and he hissed in pain, involuntarily letting go of one of the two blades. She huffed and feinted right, then left, before finally attacking on his right side again, the wooden staff of the lance hitting him in his abdomen.

Nyx warped back, chest rising as he breathed heavily from the blows. Despite that, he warped back and met her directly in the center of the room, once again swiping at her. Lucinda saw the blow coming and stopped it again with her lance, waiting until his feet touched the ground before tripping him with one of her legs.

He fell backwards and laid there, raising his hands in defeat. Lucinda stepped out of the range of his legs and slowly lowered the lance. She breathed a sigh of relief as he picked up his training kukris and holstered them, signaling that the fight was truly over.

The two walked to the racks on the side and deposited their training weapons there.

Instead of ending their training there, they decided to do a little workout before leaving.

“You've gotten a lot stronger since we first trained together, Luc.” The words from Nyx threw her off and she looked at him with raised brows. He continued, watching her intently as she did the push ups. “At first you were pretty weak and always on the defensive, your stance terrible and your balance off. But now you can hold yourself against me and you even attack me without hesitation.”

Lucinda focused on the ache in her arms and legs. The war didn't care whether you were willing to hurt people or not. It was either to incapacitate the enemies or die. She hadn't been on the frontlines directly, only in the medic tents in the back, but often enough the whole camp erupted in chaos whenever Niflheim managed to breach their lines. She'd had some opportunities where she had to protect herself and her comrades.

“Thanks, Nyx. I appreciate your words.” And she did, despite her negative thoughts.

Nyx sat down on the ground, stretching out his arms above his head, and Lucinda followed suit.

Her thoughts strayed to the test that awaited her.

It's officially been almost four years ever since she was taken into the Prince's retinue after the glorious debacle that was them catching her outside the Wall. Although she was hesitant at first and did not like the idea, she found herself unable to envision a different future now.

They weren't easy and she often felt like giving up, especially on days when she returned from the medic camps of the war frontlines. If it weren't for her parents catching her every time, she would have been brought to her knees long ago. No matter how long she was gone to help in the war, they always welcomed her back warmly and held her as she cried and sobbed.

Despite rarely being able to join the normal training sessions, the boys bonded with her more than ever. They spent as much time as they could with her, either at the Citadel for their training or at the school which Prompto attended, too.

She had feared they'd slowly lose interest in her with her continued absence, but it seemed as if she was a part of their lives that they couldn't forget.

“What do you think is Cor's test for you, Luc?”

Nyx voice ripped her out of her mind and she brushed a hand through her hair, shaking her head. “No idea. I was hoping you knew something.”

“Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you. That would be cheating.”

Lucinda sighed and stood up, sight blurring for a second. She hadn't noticed before that she was this exhausted.

“Whatever he has in store for me, I'll pass this test and be an official part of Noctis' Crownsguard.”

She had to; if only to stay with him and the others longer.

>>>><<<<

Lucinda stood in front of the King and Cor, the only two people being present for her test. Noctis and Prompto were at school and the other two boys were forced to train on their own. None of them knew that she was currently here, waiting for her test to begin.

"How are you, Lucinda?", King Regis asked, a gentle smile playing on his lips. "I hear you have made a few friends in the Kingsglaive and you've been doing a great job helping out in the medic tents."

"I'm fine, Your Highness. Thank you for asking." She bowed to him, straightening up after a few respectful seconds to face the two men. "I'm glad people are saying that. It was hard getting accustomed to them, seeing as they have different abilities, but I think I learned a lot from them. The Glaives are great soldiers, and even greater humans. They only deserve the utmost respect."

Regis smiled at the sincerity of her words, nodding at her. "Just so. I'm glad you think so. Now then... let us tell you about the test and not wait any longer. Cor, please explain the rules to her."

Cor nodded, uncrossing his arms and gesturing out the window. "The world is a dangerous place. More so at night due to the daemons crawling out of the earth and wreaking havoc. Your task for this test is simple. You have to survive three days out in the wild. You aren't allowed to enter a city, nor are you allowed to be seen by the guards on the wall. On the third day at noon, we will expect you at Hammerhead, which is north quite a few miles of Insomnia. Understood?"

Lucinda grew increasingly tense at his words. Three days outside the city. Outside the Wall. No family. No human contact...no direct food supply. Dangers everywhere.

What were they planning? She was sure neither Ignis nor Gladio had to do something like this.

However unlike her, they were born into this life seeing as their fathers have been members of the Crownsguard for decades now.

"I... understand, sir." Lucinda fidgeted in her spot. She wanted to throw insults at their heads, find out what made them think she would survive this... but she had provoked Cor alone several times already and she did not want the King to be mad at her as well. Angering the king of all people was the worst she could do.

She had always wanted to leave the city and roam the wildlife freely. She might not have been outside in a while thanks to her duties, but that didn't mean she forget all the things she learned about it.

"Good. We will prepare you with supplies that will last you the first day, plus a basic map of the area leading from Insomnia to Hammerhead. You know about the camping areas?"

"The havens? Yes. They were reinforced with magic millennia ago, making it impossible for beasts or daemons to enter them or notice you inside of it."

"Correct. If you manage to get to the one near Hammerhead, you'll be safe for the rest of the days. If not... well, I'm sure you'll be able to figure something out. You're an intelligent young girl and your experience should help you out a lot."

"I understand, sir."

Yet her mind roared at her to refuse, to beg on her knees for something else.

"Then let's go. The more time we waste, the less daylight you have to march to the haven."

Lucinda unconsciously put a hand on top of the cuff hiding the scars on her arm. She had a feeling that soon, this won't be the only scar on her body. Although she had yet to show anyone the horrid scar left by an Ereshkigal. She wasn't ready to explain her encounters with those beings yet. Maybe never.

Three days... shouldn't be too hard, right?

Regis' reassuring smile fell off his face once Lucinda was out of sight and he leaned back on his throne. Personally, he would have preferred a much simpler test than this one. Let her fight against several people to see how much she had improved and to see if she was still hesitating. Never before had they ever dared to send any of their soldiers outside on their own.

Cor, however, had argued with him that there was only one way for Lucinda to truly learn to go against her heart. By putting her out into the wild with zero preparation whatsoever. She needed to find that spark inside her that allowed her to fight and the wild that she treasured so much was most likely the only place for her to find it in as not even the war had made her lose her values.

What she wouldn't know, however, was that several Kingsglaives were going to be watching her the whole time, not letting her out of sight and making sure she came out of this unharmed. They had the King's command to step in, should an especially strong daemon appear at night while she had yet to reach the haven. Although that was result in Lucinda's immediate loss.

Then there was the underlying fear of Niflheim infiltrating that area on those exact days.

If worst came to worst, they just had to stop the test and make sure to get her out alive.

If Lucinda lost her life during it...

Regis shook his head. Thinking about the worst possible outcomes of this was a bad idea. The girl was smart and strong. She would survive this with no problems at all.

"It's nice to see how much you trust her."

Clarus was standing in the open door leading into the throne room, a grin on his face. "I remember how anxious you were at first because none of us knew if she was a traitor or not. Quite a change to now."

"Lucinda never showed any signs of standing in contact with the Niflheim Empire. On top of that, we want to see how well she does if she ever were to be sent out on missions by herself", Regis explained. "She has the potential to be a good spy."

Clarus nodded, although a frown edged its way onto his face. "As much as I see where you're coming from, I would advise against it."

"Pray tell why."

"Lucinda has formed a great bond with Noctis and the rest. If you were to send her, an official member of the Crownsguard and Noctis' friend, onto a secret spy mission that might kill her... the young Prince would be enraged. He is fond of her, and so are the other boys. He wouldn't understand how you could have sent her off like that."

Regis rubbed his forehead, closing his eyes. A dull throb at the back of his head started worming its way through it. "I know, Clarus. I know... but for now, don't worry about it. Lucinda is too young to start as a spy anyhow. Her training and education are more important at the moment, and her parents would never agree to it."

"It's better this way. Trust me, Regis. I know."

"I believe you."

>>>><<<<

Lucinda watched the buildings pass in a blur, taking note of how many people were outside at this time of the day. Her thoughts were running hundred miles a minute.

She hadn't said a word since leaving the throne room, and neither had Cor tried to start a conversation. She was grateful for that at least as it gave her time to calm herself and get her mind ready for the task ahead.

What were they trying to gain from this test? Did they still fear she was a secret spy from Niflheim and that she'd use this as a chance to contact them?

No, that wasn't it. She'd seen it in Regis' frown earlier, the way he looked worried despite trying to reassure her.

Then why?

Why did they have to send her outside the Wall?

If it had been any other occasion, she would have been happy to get out of the city, to be able to explore the wildlife as much as she pleased. She was stronger now than ever before, making it less dangerous than when she was 13 years old and sneaked out.

But she was a child still nonetheless.

And never, ever had she been outside the Wall during the night.

The beasts wandering the nature during the day were harmless compared to the daemons appearing at night.

"Lucinda."

She forced her eyes away from the buildings, looking at Cor. Nothing betrayed his emotions. He was impossible to read, as he always was.

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes, a quiet sigh escaping him. "You are wondering why I decided to send you outside the Wall, aren't you?"

She didn't bother lying to him. He'd know anyhow. "Yes."

"I'll explain it to you after the test. I promise. We all believe in you. You are a strong girl, Lucinda."

Lucinda snorted, defensively crossing her arms in front of her body as she turned back to the window. "Yeah. So strong that you put me into the Kingsglaive because my progress wasn't fast enough for you", she snapped back, her hidden frustration and annoyance rising up.

Never would she forget that he was the one to allowed her to see the true face of the war.

Of course she had seen the news prior to being part of the Kingsglaive. They reported on the failed battles often enough, always focusing on the number of loses suffered once again as the Empire attacked them. The war had yet to touch the city, giving her an entitled life of not knowing the horrors that awaited one on the frontlines and the medic camps.

Her heart shattered entirely when a man died while she was trying to help one of the healers. The man had been crying, his pants soiled from fear and despair. He had known the wounds were too severe and so he cried out to his wife and his child in the last minutes of his life. He had prayed for their safety to the Astrals, his gods.  
He had begged on and on until he fainted from the heavy blood loss, dying soon after.

Lucinda wished she could say he was the only death she witnessed, but fate wasn't kind to her in that matter.

That day was the day she understood why Cor sent her to the Kingsglaive.

It was true that this had forced her to grow up faster than she would have otherwise. One part of her was unhappy about that.

However, Lucinda could never hate him for this. He only looked out for his King and his city. As he had told her at the very beginning, even a second of hesitation can end a life.

So she rested her head back and closed her eyes, trying not to think too much about what lay ahead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm getting closer to the end of the first part with my writing <3 I actually should be done with it by chapter 20.
> 
> To all those reading my story: thank you! I really appreciate it


End file.
